Harmony

Hi,

Today we had a high of 98°F and a low of 70° is coming. It’s 9pm and it’s 84 at our house. Whew. The smoke might have been a little better on the ‘index’, but it still looked very hazy and smelled bad. This evening I caught the scent of burning plastic near the highway. 

The ‘Easy Monday’ song was quickly recognized by regular ‘contributors’. If you remember this one, chime in:

“You say although we broke up, you still wanna be friends. But how can we still be friends when seeing you only breaks my heart again? And there ain’t nothin’ I can do about it. Whoa-whoa-whoa, set me free why don’t you babe?…__ __ __ __ __ __”. Clue: There is an extra word that is sung, but not in the title. 

This morning we took the van to Suzuki for the new fan motor and a six-month service. They told us it would take 2 hours. There was no way we could sit in the waiting room for 2 hours watching Thai news and soaps so we left. Just as we reached the sidewalk, we saw one of our artist friends crossing the street. Khun Yai and I used to have conversations over coffee years ago, talking about everything under the sun. He gave us a ride farther up Bus Station street and that saved a lot of walking. We had coffee at Connect Cafe and relaxed. We still had too much time to kill on the street so we got a taxi and went home. It’s ironic that the neighbor nobody wants on our street, has become the landmark everyone in town knows. All we had to say was ‘Bed Villa’ and the driver knew where to go. It took a couple of tries to get him to understand that we did not want to go there (555).

We had just finished lunch when I got a call from Suzuki, telling us the van was ready. Nice timing. A few minutes and the taxi returned, as arranged, and we were off. 

Part of the afternoon plan was to go up to the new Bangkok Hospital and get more information on the infection in Lisa’s ankle and find out why it was still hurting. The new facility is maintaining the standard seen in all of the BKK hospitals. It feels like a hotel. This one is new, so there wasn’t much traffic. Once Lisa explained the situation to the doctor, he ordered an ultra-sound and requested a consult with another doctor. By the end of the afternoon, they had decided that she needed a more aggressive treatment that called for an IV drip of antibiotics, over night. A few hours later it turned to three days. As it stands now, Lisa will be at the hospital for 3 days and there may be another procedure but they’re not sure. I took her a bunch of essential stuff and she’s already had visitors. The first thing Thai people want to know is ‘Who’s going to take care of her’ or ‘Who will stay with her?’. Well, there are a whole bunch of people that will take care of her. I’d stay, but the menu is not like in Chiang Mai, it’s not ‘Danny Friendly’. Plus, Lisa doesn’t think the day bed is adequate for a good night’s sleep. If it’s going to be three nights, I’m sleepin’ over at least one. 

Daku was a little confused when I returned without Lisa. Then, when I sat down to eat dinner alone he really got concerned. The idea of slipping outside with Natcha and Nitchanan totally distracted him for a long time. 

Today’s photo was taken on my way home from the hospital. This is proof that I was not hallucinating the clouds over Chiang Rai. They were real, and they did drift away without dropping a single drop of rain.

Have a Happy Tuesday.

  Peace,

  Danny

"Happiness is when what you 

think, what you say, and what

 you do are in harmony.”

~Mahatma Gandhi

Power

Hi,

The forecasts are telling us we’re going to have a week that will be over 100°F this week, plus the smoke.  Oh, and the rain?  Forget about it.

The ‘Old School Friday’ song was “(They Long To Be) Close To You”, by The Carpenters.  Here’s an ‘Easy Monday’ to start a new set of memories flooding in:  “Set me free, why don’t you, baby?  Get out my life, why don’t you, babe?  ‘Cause you don’t really love me, you just __ __ __ __.  You don’t really need me, but __ __ __ __ __.”  Hint: 

It was 1967, the summer of love, and three young women from Detroit were tearin’ up the charts. 

Saturday morning we developed a plan for the day and went to breakfast in the hotel.  While we were eating we saw one of the staff that had been very helpful a few years ago when I was recuperating from surgery.  She and the other staff went out of their way to make sure we got what we needed.  After breakfast we went to Bangkok Hospital for a consultation on Lisa's ankle and found out that the bone has completely healed.  That was good news

We had a 1pm lunch date with our friend Marty, who is from New York, but lives in Chiang Mai.  The restaurant we were going to was a new one for us so we had to consult with Ms. Google.  She wasn’t talking and that complicated the whole ride.  After much frustration, we arrived just before the host.  It was a lunch full of lively conversation and interesting food.  We had to get away before everyone else in order to keep our schedule for the drive home.  

The heat and the air pollution slowed down our Sunday activities.  We mostly stayed inside and just hung out.  It’s getting repetitious, but that’s what you do when the outside is nothing but bad air.  We braved The Wanderer on Sunday and had lunch under the misters.  “Mercy, The Wander Dog” was quite entertaining.  Kwan and Kern were watching their little nephew, who was playing with toy trucks and zoo animals.  Mercy took a great interest in a plastic zebra.  She would take it, get scolded, act like she understood, and then a few minutes later it was back in her mouth.  

Sunday evening we went to The Hungry Wolf for dinner.  It was nice to be inside with clean air and a nice view.  Sadly, the ‘Wolf’ will be closed until May 10.  The owner decided to give the whole staff a month off so they could go away to clean air if they wanted.  Our waitress was from Koh Samui and is planning to go home for part of her vacation.  Sounds like a trip we’d like to take.

Today, Cat came over for dinner.  We had many fun conversations about language, school, and life in general.  One interesting topic was typing in Thai.  There are tone symbols relating to the sounds of certain vowels.  First you have to type the vowel and then the tone and then the rest of the word.  It makes typing slower than in English, according to Cat.  Also, when she first came to live with us, her sister would call her and ask her what she was eating, but our food doesn’t have names for dishes.  Cat said she would tell her the ‘elements’ of the meal.  This seemed to reassure her that we were feeding her little sister.

The photo below has been photographed quite a bit this weekend.  We saw photos of it posted on Facebook by friends of ours. 

Have a Great Week.

                     Peace,

                               Danny

“The power of imagination

makes us infinite.”

~John Muir

Friday Funnies

Hi,

Weather wise, we know that it’s hot, but we can’t really see the sky so we don’t know what’s going on.  In Chiang Rai we suspected that it might have been cloudy this morning because it all felt darker.  We’re in Chiang Mai where the air is even worse.

The not so ‘Zany Day’ song was “I Won’t Last A Day Without You” by The Carpenters.  As their week comes to an end, here’s an ‘Old School Friday’ from 1970:  “Why do birds suddenly appear, every time you are near?  Just like me, (__ __ __ __) __ __ __.”  Hint:  Really?    

We took our time getting to Chiang Mai this morning.  Usually, there’s a window of accessibility that we’re dealing with when trying to see a doctor.  This time there were no appointments so we left a little later and didn’t push it on the highway.  That was nice.  There was the traditional ‘pie stop’ and then we just cruised down the road for 3 hours.  Central Festival Mall was our designated lunch stop since we were a little early for hotel check-in.  Friday lunchtime during the season of really bad air is the easiest way to test a mall’s capabilities (555).  There were a lot of people in there, strolling, shopping, eating and ice-skating.  We ate at restaurant chain that features coffee, what else?  Their latest concoction is a ‘mango, coffee, fizzy’.  The mango juice gets a shot of sparkling water, and then coffee americano is slowly poured into the glass.  It stays separated until the first stir and then it starts to blend.  I took it in stages and I liked it.  I hope they offer it in Chiang Rai.

On the road this morning we saw lots of fires.  Not the actual flames, but the smoke rising from hillsides, burning among the trees.  For some reason, I had imagined all the fires were in remote areas, but these were right there in plain sight, visible from the highway.  Need I say more?

The air in Chiang Mai does not seem to have discouraged visitors from shopping at the Night Bazaar.  On my way back to our hotel this evening, after my meeting, the sidewalks were full of people looking for bargains, taking photos and generally having that special vacation.  Some wore masks, but a lot did not.  A friend of ours just returned from Hua Hin, which is a coastal town east of Bangkok.  He spent time there to avoid the air in Chiang Mai. Last night he slept with his mask on to avoid the air.  We’ll drive back to Chiang Rai tomorrow (Saturday).

Have a Wonderful WeekEnd.

                        Peace,

                                  Danny

Dreamer

Hi,

Last night we had a tiny little rain event.  The ground got wet, but it wasn’t enough to make a difference.  By morning the air was still unhealthy.  

The Carpenters seem to bring back a lot of memories.  There’s really nothing ‘Zany’ about this, just a good song.

“So many times when the city seems to be without a friendly face, a lonely place.  It’s nice to know that you’ll be there if I need you and you’ll always smile, it’s all worthwhile.  When there’s no getting over that rainbow.  When my smallest of dreams won’t come true… But __ __ __ __ __ __ __.”  Clue?:  You don’t need no clue.

This morning we went out into the world.  Our first stop was the local Suzuki dealer for some troubleshooting.  We’ve been hearing a strange sound from the front of the van and didn’t want to take any chances.  It’s the fan motor, not a problem and will be fixed on Monday.  So glad they have a young man with a fair amount of English working in the service department.  Trying to communicate things like this can be very difficult at times.  

A notice from the post office of an International Delivery was motivation enough for us to drive up to Ban Du and retrieve the goods.  It was stuff for Daku, and Customs wanted their share.  Hmm.

We had a double dose of tacos today.  First, there was lunch at Sambroso, where you get four little open-faced tacos full of chicken and tomatoes.  For dinner, Natcha served her delicious home-made tortillas filled with chicken and veggies.  They’re really more like burritos without the beans.  Before dinner I went in the kitchen and Nitchanan had a little ball of dough, imitating her mom, kneading it and basically having fun.  

Today would have been our dear friend Blue’s 76th birthday.  He’s been on my mind lately.  A lot of things either remind me of him or things I think he’d get a kick out of.  I decided to post a few photos.  

We were clowning at the mall.  He’s thinking, this dude has lost his mind.

This was taken in the States by his good friends Mariana and Richard 

This is our ‘famous’ Songkran selfie

Have a Thrilling Thursday.

                     Peace,

                               Danny

“Every great dream begins with

a dreamer.  Always remember, you

have within you the strength, the

patience, and the passion to reach

for the stars to change the world.”

~Harriet Tubman

Nature

Hi,

Another day, another smoke filled sky.  There was a report on Facebook that there was wind and rain north of us in Mae Chan.  Now it’s getting very windy at our house.  We live in hope.  

The ‘Easy Monday’ song was “Rainy Days and Mondays” by The Carpenters.  Now you know who sang this next song:

“Day after day I must face a world of strangers where I don’t belong, I’m not that strong.  It’s nice to know that there’s someone I can turn to who will always care, you’re always there.  When there’s no getting over that rainbow, when my smallest of dreams won’t come true.  I can take all the madness the world has to give, but __ __ __ __ __ __ __.”  Hint:  You’ll notice that it’s not really a ‘Zany Day’ song.  They didn’t do zany songs that were popular.  This really is a love song, though it doesn’t seem like it.  Something about endurance through 24 hours.

As we strolled around IconSiam on Sunday, it was time for coffee.  Just around the bend we saw the sign: CPS Coffee.  We’d never heard of this name so we gave it a look.  It had a different look than places we’re used to so we went up to the counter and ordered.  Something about this place really appealed to me.  For lack of a better term, I’ll call it ‘Coffee Chic’.  The screens on the counter explain the different brews such as Hand Drip and Nitro Brew.  Our iced coffee was served in a manner befitting IconSiam.  I must say, that was a most comfortable couch for sipping coffee.

This morning we went out fairly early and had coffee at The Wanderer.  Mercy greeted us inside and then Khun Kwan came to our table and we had an interesting conversation about the coffee shop business.  The bad air isn’t helping many businesses that are more or less outside enterprises.  The tourism board announced that hotel bookings are down for the Songkran Festival this year, because of the smokey air.  After coffee we went to our local nursery for a few plants and some border material for a new flower bed Gong created.  Several shops were closed, probably due to the air, but we did get a couple of flowering plants that are now adding color to the poolside view.

Daku has had his upstairs privileges partially restored.  He’s been spending the evenings with us, as well as overnight.  We’re leaving the climbing to his judgment and our observations.  If he hasn’t been limping and wants to come upstairs, we let him.  We’re all happy.

Feels like a Wacky Wednesday.

                         Peace,

                                   Danny

“Nature never breaks her 

own laws.”

~Leonardo da Vinci

Beauty

Hi,

The battle with the air continues and we’re losing.  It has come to the point where everyone has something to say.  The King, The Princess, universities, professors, politicians and now the people are all insisting that something be done.  Meanwhile, we hide out with our machines and wear our masks when we go outside.  

The ‘Easy Monday’ song starts out very sad, but ends on a happy note.  It’s by a brother/sister combo.

“What I’ve got they used to call the blues.  Nothin’ is really wrong, feelin’ like I don’t belong.  Walkin’ around, some kind of lonely clown.  __ __ __ __ always get me down.  Funny but it seems I always wind up here with you.  Nice to know somebody loves me.  Funny but it seems that it’s the only thing to do.  Run and find the one who loves me…”  Clue:  There is weather and a day of the week involved.

If you recall, yesterday’s message had just ended with our preparing to go to IconSiam.  After negotiating with the taxi driver, which is part of the ride, we got to experience Bangkok traffic on a Sunday morning.  On any day it is like no other place.  On Sunday I think there are more cars.  To hear the driver tell it, it was going to take forever to get there and that’s why he wanted so much.  It only took 20 minutes.  From the moment we stepped out of the cab, we knew this was going to be different.  A uniformed young man opened the giant glass doors and we walked through a gold entry that looked like something from a palace.  The level we were on was designed to look and feel like a market place.  Lots of booths with traditional food and clothing, and a water feature that included two longboats with women cooking and selling food, just like the famous ‘floating market’.  

The entry/exit

The Floating Market

There are many ‘High End’ luxury shopping centers in Bangkok.  IconSiam is the latest and it attracts those with and without the money to leave with something.  We just looked, things were a bit out of our ‘range’.  If we were so inclined, it would have been a good day to pick up a new Porsche along with outfits from any number of designers.

We did stop for coffee at a really cool place I’ll show you tomorrow.

We left Icon and had almost the same amount of cash that we arrived with, and the satisfaction that we overcame ‘temptation’ (555).  Seriously, there were just a few things that really would have made my day.  

The ride back to the hotel took a little longer, but we got to see more of the city.  There is a lot of major construction going on and they don’t stop on Sunday.  I would get so lost trying to find my way around that city.

Have a Happy Tuesday.

                  Peace,

                            Danny

“Imperfection is beauty,

madness is genius and it’s 

better to be absolutely 

ridiculous than absolutely

boring.”

~Marilyn Monroe

Love

Hi,

The ‘talk of the town’ is the bad air.  Everywhere one goes, it’s sure to be one of the first things discussed.  There is no rain in the forecast and it’s changing the spirit of the community.  

The ‘Old School Friday’ song was “For Once In My Life” by Stevie Wonder.  ‘Easy Monday’ kicks off a week with a duo you just might remember.  “Talkin’ to myself and feelin’ old, sometimes I’d like to quit, nothin’ ever seems to fit.  Hangin’ around, nothing to do but frown.  __ __ __ __ always get me down.”  Hint:  We could have used the weather in this song to clear the air in Chiang Rai.  The song is by a duo.

When we went to the airport Saturday morning for our flight to Bangkok (BKK), we knew we would land in cleaner air.  As we taxied down the runway it struck us how little we could see a short distance away.  When we got close to flight altitude, Chiang Rai was gone, as in not visible.  Once we rose above the smoke, it was a thrill to realize that the blue sky was still there.

Note:  This is not a doctored photo.  This is how it looked at 9:30am.

The sky over BKK was a vivid blue with patchy clouds.  Our hotel was literally one block away from the studio where we would meet Juan.  After checking in and relaxing a bit, we went to the yoga studio and began what would be almost 2 hours of exercises, stretches and teaching.  Juan showed Lisa how to do some of the things he was doing to me, so she can help me when certain muscles tighten up.  She made videos so we can remember and see what the specific movement was.  We really appreciate his letting us do this.  He understands that we can’t get to BKK whenever there is a problem.  As I/we learn more about the technique, things will really get better.  Already, I feel better and have ways to get relief when needed.  

We had plans to go to IconSiam after seeing Juan, but when asked about walking, he suggested relaxing after the treatment.  We stopped at an Indian restaurant on the way back to our hotel and had an almost successful meal.  Trying to get a dish that is not spicy is not as easy as one would think.  The waitress assured us that they could make it ‘no spicy’, but when it came to the table it was spicy.  On the second try, it was still faintly spicy but I ate it.  We checked the water in the pool and it felt a little cool so we just relaxed in the room for the rest of the day.  Our room had what they call an ‘Urban view’, meaning the city, as opposed to the neighborhood.  Here’s the ‘Urban view’ from our 16th floor room.

Sunday morning we went to breakfast at the dining room on the 8th floor.  That seemed a little strange, but none of my business.  Another check of the pool and it was close to OK, so we changed and went down for a morning swim.  We had a short but satisfying swim and didn’t linger to play.  It wasn’t the kind of water to play in, just swim and get out.  One end of the pool ends at clear panels that look out onto the world, from the 10th floor.  It’s a little freaky, and would have been chilling except that the panels were cloudy so you knew they were there.  When they were new it must have been a different experience.  

I will save our IconSiam adventure for tomorrow.  

Have a Great Week.

                     Peace,

                               Danny

“Love is supreme and 

unconditional; like is nice 

but limited.”

~Duke Ellington